Most people are never happy with where they are or what they are doing.
One of the most frequently asked questions I receive from people on social media is this: "Why is it that I can never find a job?" These people are ready to talk about their problems, or criticize companies that do not hire them, but they do not talk enough about solutions to these problems.
I have been in the shoes of both an employee and an employer.
Therefore, from what I have learned in my professional journey so far, I have summarized my take on how you can find a job and keep it.
1) Never Accept Defeat Your lack of employment does not make you worthless.
Do not allow the opinions of others to put you down, or discourage you.
As Eleanor Roosevelt has said, "No one can make you feel inferior without your consent".
Believe in yourself, and in your abilities, and keep trying.
2) Your Job Right Now Is To Find A Job Get up, get out and go find a job.
Be active in your hunt.
Do not remain at home and let yourself be lulled into a sense of complacency, procrastination and distraction.
Act as you would when you are employed.
Wake up early in the morning, go to places and attend interviews.
Take steps that can help you get a job, such as taking courses to upgrade yourself, learning new skills, taking part-time jobs, or attending networking events.
You can do more than just scouring through job classifieds in newspapers at home.
3) Don't Depend On Resumes Essentially, your resume is just a piece of paper.
Do not use it to distract people from the real you.
Make it sharp, concise and easy to read.
But do not spend too much valuable time primping up your resume that you forget what the employer is really looking at: You.
4) Don't Depend On Facebook Unless you want to work for Mark Zuckerberg, do not depend on Facebook (or any social media) too much.
Do not flood Facebook walls or LinkedIn messages with your requests for job openings.
Of course, there is no harm in asking around for any known career opportunities, but do not overdo it by posting your contact details for the world to see, or hijacking every group discussion with your plea.
It reeks of desperation, laziness and keyboard warrior syndrome.
Do not depend on Facebook friends and relatives to find a job for you.
They are not in your shoes.
You have to stand up for yourself.
5) Don't Depend On Recruitment Firms/Agencies Even though they pretend otherwise, most recruitment firms do not have your best interests at heart.
They are not just representing you, but many other equally (or if not more) skilled individuals as well.
If given a better chance to earn more money, they will sell you short.
6) Don't Depend On HR A HR person's job is to weed out resumes that are not good.
A HR person takes one look at your resume and from there, it is entirely up to him/her to either keep it or discard it.
If you do not hear back from the HR department for a long time after sending out your resume, find your way around the HR and source for any way to talk to the boss, the hiring manager or the decision maker.
Be proactive.
7) Change Your Perspective on Interviews Do not fear interviews.
Instead of thinking of it as a crucial assessment, think of it as an opportunity to sell yourself.
An interview is essentially you talking about yourself.
Nobody knows you better than you do.
Show your prospective employers who you are, how you going to help the company, what you have done for other companies and what you are going to do for this company.
Sell yourself so that when they come to you with an offer, you get to choose whether you want to accept it or not.
8) Talk About The Future Present yourself as if you are already part of the company.
Talk about how you are going to bring the company far.
But first, conduct your own research to find out about the company's strengths and weaknesses.
Then, relate yourself to the company's future by stating how you can change or improve that.
Bring in your perspectives and opinions on how you are going to make a difference.
Your fresh ideas and knowledge will make you stand out.
9) Prove Yourself It might not be easy finding a job, but it is not easy keeping one either.
It is unprofessional and unethical to be demanding high pay and benefits when you can't do your job right.
Put your money where your mouth is and do what you are being paid for.
In fact, do more than what you are being paid for if you can.
It will not just help you gain security and respect in your current job, but might even help you get glowing recommendations for your future jobs.
Take responsibility for the work you are supposed to do.
Prove yourself.
10) Whatever Happens, Happens Do not dwell on sour experiences, be it bad interviews or bad prior work experiences.
Do not talk bad about any company that you have previously worked for, either in an interview or in your CV in an effort to 'praise' the current company you are interviewing for.
Your hiring manager may be smiling in your interview but high chances that he/she has already ticked off your name thinking that you will most probably say the same about this company after you leave.
It may not feel like it now, but every bad interview or disastrous job experience, is a life lesson learned.
Good luck and be safe.
Raj Singh